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Nest.js VS Opa

Compare Nest.js VS Opa and see what are their differences

Nest.js logo Nest.js

A progressive Node.js framework for building efficient, reliable and scalable server-side applications.

Opa logo Opa

Opa is an open source, simple and unified platform for writing web applications.
  • Nest.js Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-26
  • Opa Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-16

Nest.js features and specs

  • Modular Architecture
    Nest.js uses a modular architecture which is highly organized and maintainable. This allows for better separation of concerns and makes it easier to manage large-scale applications by dividing them into smaller, reusable modules.
  • TypeScript Support
    Nest.js is built with TypeScript, providing strong typing and compile-time checks. This leads to fewer runtime errors and improved code readability and maintainability.
  • Dependency Injection
    The framework includes a powerful dependency injection system, which enables better testability and easier management of application components.
  • Built-in Middleware
    Nest.js supports middleware out of the box, allowing developers to easily add additional request-processing logic at different points in the request lifecycle.
  • Extensive Documentation
    Nest.js offers comprehensive and detailed documentation, which helps developers quickly get up to speed and resolve issues more efficiently.
  • Scalability
    The framework is designed to be scalable, making it suitable for projects of varying sizes—from small applications to large enterprise-level systems.
  • Integration with Modern Libraries
    Nest.js seamlessly integrates with modern libraries and frameworks such as GraphQL, WebSockets, and TypeORM, extending its capabilities and allowing for versatile development options.
  • Active Community
    An active and growing community around Nest.js means there are plenty of resources, tutorials, and third-party tools available to assist with development.

Possible disadvantages of Nest.js

  • Learning Curve
    Due to its rich feature set and use of TypeScript, Nest.js can have a steep learning curve for developers who are not familiar with these technologies.
  • Overhead
    The reliance on the decorators and classes can introduce additional overhead, potentially making simple projects more complex than necessary.
  • Limited Flexibility
    Nest.js follows an opinionated architecture pattern, which can be restrictive for developers who prefer a more flexible or unstructured approach.
  • Performance
    While Nest.js is generally performant, the abstraction layers and TypeScript compile steps can introduce slight performance overhead compared to more lightweight alternatives.
  • Dependency on TypeScript
    The heavy reliance on TypeScript can be a drawback for developers who prefer to use plain JavaScript, or who are not familiar with TypeScript.
  • Community Compared to Mainstream Frameworks
    Although the Nest.js community is active and growing, it is still smaller compared to more established frameworks like Express.js or Koa, potentially limiting the amount of shared knowledge and third-party packages available.

Opa features and specs

  • Full-Stack Development
    Opa is designed to be a full-stack language, which means it can handle both the client-side and server-side development within a single codebase. This reduces the need for context switching between multiple programming languages and can simplify the development process.
  • Security Features
    Opa includes built-in security features such as automatic data validation and prevention of common web vulnerabilities like XSS and SQL injection, potentially reducing the number of security issues in web applications.
  • Concurrency Support
    Opa natively supports asynchronous programming and concurrency, allowing developers to write efficient, non-blocking code without needing additional frameworks or libraries.
  • Integrated Web Development
    The language integrates multiple aspects of web development such as database, server, and client interactions, aiming to streamline the process and reduce the complexity of managing disparate technologies.

Possible disadvantages of Opa

  • Limited Adoption
    Opa is not widely adopted, which can result in a smaller community and fewer resources, tutorials, or third-party libraries compared to more popular web development languages and frameworks.
  • Learning Curve
    Developers new to Opa might face a steep learning curve due to its unique approach and syntax, which differs considerably from more traditional web development languages.
  • Tooling and Ecosystem
    The tooling and ecosystem around Opa may not be as mature or robust as those surrounding other more established languages, potentially leading to challenges in finding compatible tools or plugins.
  • Performance Overheads
    While Opa abstracts many details for developers, this abstraction can introduce performance overheads compared to languages that allow more fine-tuned control over performance optimizations.

Analysis of Nest.js

Overall verdict

  • Nest.js is an excellent choice for building scalable and maintainable server-side applications, especially if you prefer a structured and opinionated framework.

Why this product is good

  • Nest.js is built on top of Express.js, which is a well-established framework in the Node.js ecosystem, providing robust features and flexibility.
  • It follows the modular architecture inspired by Angular, making it a great choice for developers familiar with Angular's dependency injection and design patterns.
  • Nest.js supports TypeScript out of the box, which enhances code quality and maintainability through static typing.
  • The framework is highly extensible and allows easy integration with various libraries and tools.
  • Nest.js provides extensive documentation and an active community, which facilitates problem-solving and learning.

Recommended for

  • Developers looking for a TypeScript-first backend framework.
  • Teams that value modularity and clear project organization in their web applications.
  • Projects that require rapid development with modern JavaScript features and strong community support.
  • Backend systems that need to be scalable and performant using Node.js.

Nest.js videos

Why I chose Nest.js over Express.js in 2020

Opa videos

My food review at Opa of Greece!

More videos:

  • Review - Classic Game Room - OPA OPA review for Sega Mark III

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Nest.js and Opa)
Web Frameworks
93 93%
7% 7
JavaScript Framework
93 93%
7% 7
Developer Tools
92 92%
8% 8
Development
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Nest.js and Opa

Nest.js Reviews

Top JavaScript Frameworks in 2025
Nest (NestJS) is a framework for building efficient and scalable server-side backend applications using Node.Js. Internally, it actually makes use of JavaScript Back-end frameworks like Express (which is the default, and optionally Fastify can be configured to use as well!
Source: solguruz.com
10 Best Next.js Alternatives to Consider Today
For TypeScript aficionados seeking a framework with a modular, scalable architecture, NestJS stands out. Built on top of Node.js, NestJS offers a powerful set of abstractions for building server-side applications. Its modular structure facilitates the creation of scalable and maintainable codebases, making it a preferred choice for enterprise-level applications where a...
The 20 Best Laravel Alternatives for Web Development
NestJS is a Node.js framework that’s inspired by Angular, and guess what? It’s written in TypeScript. Building with Typescript is like you’re navigating with the stars. It’s all about sturdy architecture, a server-side framework that enjoys the scripting superness while piling on extra sturdiness.
Top 10 Best Node. Js Frameworks to Improve Web Development
It is a structure, which is used for making expert, versatile Node.js applications on the server-side. It employs powerful JavaScript plus designed with TypeScript. Working with TypeScript indicates Nest brings uninterrupted writing and incorporates elements like the following
Top 14 Node.JS Frameworks: Which Will Rule in 2020?
Nest utilizes Express.JS and provides an unusual app architecture that allows for the easy development of easily maintainable, loosely paired and highly scalable and testable apps. Developers can use Nest CLI for developing NestJS apps with different features.

Opa Reviews

We have no reviews of Opa yet.
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Nest.js seems to be a lot more popular than Opa. While we know about 218 links to Nest.js, we've tracked only 3 mentions of Opa. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Nest.js mentions (218)

  • Scalable REST API Architecture with NestJS, Prisma, Swagger, & Docker: How To.
    NestJS is a progressive Node.js framework inspired by Angular's architecture. It uses TypeScript and follows object-oriented programming principles, making it ideal for building scalable server-side applications. Its modular structure encourages the separation of concerns, leading to more maintainable code. (Check out Nest). - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Next.js vs Nest.js: Understanding the Difference
    Read more about Next.js here and Nest.js here. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
  • Secure Your REST API Using Keycloak Role-Based Access Control
    In this article, we will walk through a step-by-step process to secure a Nest.js RESTful API using Keycloak. This includes setting up an application client and configuring authentication and RBAC for your API endpoints. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Next.js vs Nest.js: What to Choose in 2025?
    The rapid evolution of web development in 2025 makes it imperative to choose a framework that truly fits your project. Whether this involves a dynamic web application, scalable API, or high-performance SaaS product, the decision to select Next.js or Nest.js becomes all the more key. While both do their thing really well, in this sense, they don't do the same thing. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Why Ruby on Rails still matters
    Ok, you're right. I was referring to the usual ones (Next, Nuxt, SvelteKit, Remix, etc). Joytick looks cool. Besides this there's also NestJS https://nestjs.com/. - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago
View more

Opa mentions (3)

  • Imba – The friendly full-stack language
    I remember Opa http://opalang.org/ tried something similar at the time when MongoDB was new and modern. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: What web frameworks/technologies did not succeed as per your expectation
    We come across some web frameworks and technologies that we think will succeed, but they wither away as time passes by and don't succeed to the level we expected. Which web frameworks and or technologies did you come across that you thought would succeed but did not as per your expectations? For example, I thought that Opa Lang[0] and UrWeb[1] would succeed but did not, even though the ideas were sound. [0]... - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Modern JavaScript:Everything you missed over the last 10 years(ECMAScript 2020)
    I think the Opa language was doing JSX-like code in the frontend before JSX http://opalang.org/ Both Opa and JSX were created in 2011. Opa had other innovations as well, such having the same code base run on both client and server (like Next.js). Unfortunately it didn't get traction and was abandoned by the creators. - Source: Hacker News / about 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Nest.js and Opa, you can also consider the following products

ExpressJS - Sinatra inspired web development framework for node.js -- insanely fast, flexible, and simple

Ruby on Rails - Ruby on Rails is an open source full-stack web application framework for the Ruby programming...

Laravel - A PHP Framework For Web Artisans

ASP.NET - ASP.NET is a free web framework for building great Web sites and Web applications using HTML, CSS and JavaScript.

Adonis JS - AdonisJs is a Node.js web framework with breath of fresh air and drizzle of elegant syntax on top of it

ember.js - A JavaScript framework for creating ambitious web apps